Carry On star told friend ‘I’m not going to live long’ | UK News
Hattie Jacques shot to fame after starring in her first Carry On movie in 1958, before going on to star in 14 more. She was a larger-than-life character, but her weight had a lot to do with her roles – and later her death.
The actress’ close pal Bob Monkhouse once recalled: “I wasn’t stunned by the pace of her success because it was so arduous to discover girls at that time, significantly in radio and virtually immediately in TV, who may do what Hattie may do. So with Hattie being clearly a good comic, a good comedy actress, everybody wished to make use of her, so she grew to become well-known in a short time. Her profession was tremendously helped in phrases of common employment by her weight because there she was, a great big roly-poly, and roly-polys have been humorous. But that didn’t permit the movers and shakers of show business to see her, to understand her as something but that fats woman. I never preferred jokes about Hattie being overweight because that wasn’t the purpose with Hattie. She was a lot more than that.
“She later grew to become a goal for those jokes in the Carry Ons because the author, Talbot Rothwell, was a joke author. I most well-liked her position as Eric Sykes’ sister because her weight was never referred to.”
Whilst Sykes and the Carry Ons maintained her public profile, behind the scenes, Hattie’s weight was becoming increasingly problematic.
In May 1980, Jacques’ GP cautioned her against a planned holiday to Greece, so she opted for Ireland instead. During the return ferry journey, she heartbreakingly confided to her friend Bruce Copp: “You know I’m not going to live long”.
Hattie’s weight soared to over 20st, bringing with it arthritis and ulcerated legs, whilst she also endured several cancer scares and underwent surgery for benign tumours on her kidneys.
Her health continued to deteriorate, and insurance firms declined to provide cover for her film projects. By October, her weight had climbed further; she experienced breathing difficulties and was once more admitted to Charing Cross Hospital.
She took a weekend respite from the hospital and returned to her home in Eardley Crescent, where on 6 October she died from a coronary heart assault while sleeping, and was also struggling from kidney failure. She was only 58.
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